SBS drama ‘The Last Empress’ tops weekly TV chart

January 3, 2019

SEOUL, Jan. 3 (Yonhap) — SBS’s drama series “The Last Empress,” starring actress Jang Na-ra, topped the weekly TV program chart, closely followed by the tvN drama “Memories of the Alhambra,” data showed Thursday.

The SBS program, aired every Wednesday and Thursday, began its 48-episode series on Nov. 21 with a modest viewership rating in the seven percent range but has since steadily gained popularity to surpass 16 percent in viewership.

For the week of Dec. 24-30, the program earned a Content Power Index (CPI) score of 265.3, narrowly defeating the runner-up, “Memories of the Alhambra,” which had 259.3.

The leading drama is set in an imaginary contemporary Korean empire. Jang plays the role of Oh Sunny, a former musical singer who became empress by marriage and fell in love with an imperial family bodyguard. The latter is seeking to take his revenge on the ruling family for the unfair death of his mother.

These images provided by SBS show scenes from the drama series "The Last Empress." (Yonhap)
This promotional image of the tvN drama series "Memories of the Alhambra" was provided by the broadcaster. (Yonhap)

These images provided by SBS show scenes from the drama series “The Last Empress.” (Yonhap)